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April 26: Acts 8:1-8
Key Verse: Acts 8:6
When the crowds heard Philip and saw the signs he performed, they all paid close attention to what he said.
Devotion:
It is hard to stop a crowd of people who have been worked up to do something; whether they are right or wrong, it is hard to stop them once they get going. The people of the Sanhedrin were doing their uttermost to stop the apostles from preaching about Jesus because it was seemingly undermining their power and control of the people. What they could not control, in the end, was the spreading of the truth!
A young man got involved with this and turned vigilante to work with the Sanhedrin to try and quash the work the apostles were doing. The followers of Jesus began to spread far and wide to avoid being caught up in the things which were happening so they could continue to tell people the truth and show them God was more powerful than the people in the Sanhedrin. No longer were the Sanhedrin acting in God’s interest!
Philip went to Samaria where he was able to tell people the gospel story and through prayer, faith and trust in God, he was able to do many things which caught people’s eyes. His prayers were being answered by God because of his faith in Christ. Through him God was able to do many things. He became a light in these dark times, a light which people could look to and be encouraged by. A light which was opening up the truth!
Jesus taught the disciples to go out and make disciples by showing them what God can do when people believe and trust in Him. It is hard to do this when you are being shouted down and persecuted – sometimes it is best to walk away from the persecution and try some place else. To find out where God wants us to be we need to be willing to make changes according to His will in our lives.
Points to Ponder:
Are you stuck trying to do what you think is right?
Are you listening to what God is telling you?
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April 25: Proverbs 15:28-30
Key Verse: Proverbs 15:29
The Lord is far from the wicked, but he hears the prayer of the righteous.
Devotion:
If only there was a book or other reference we could turn to which would bring joy and peace to us every day… if you haven’t realised that reference is the bible then you need to have a proper sit down and think about what you are reading! These few verses from the book of proverbs remind us of the relationship we have with God.
We do not have a long-distance relationship where we get to see Him on very rare occasions, nor one where we are not on each others minds all the time; and it’s catching! When we are in a close relationship with Christ we tend to think about our actions and how we live because we know He is with us. Other people see this because we are different to how they may expect us to be if they are not in this same relationship too.
It is not that God does not want to be with the wicked people, rather the wicked people tend to stay away from God. He is waiting patiently for all people because Jesus died on that cross for all people. The more we realise how close He is, the more we tend to talk to Him and commune with Him through our daily living. This will not go unnoticed by others!
The more we act like Christ is with us the more other people notice and the more likely they are going to want to know why we live like we do. This supposes we are living a different life to the rest of the world! If we are living the same way as the rest of the world, then how are people every going to be introduced to the one who changed our lives!
Points to Ponder:
Do you live a different life to others?
Will you commune closer with God today?
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April 24: Psalm 126:1-6
Key Verse: Psalm 126:1
When the Lord restored the fortunes of Zion, we were like those who dreamed.
Devotion:
Can you remember your dreams when you wake up? I can remember some but not others and its a varied mixture of good and bad dreams; but the dreams being talking about here are not dreams we have when we sleep, but the dreams and aspirations of people. When we think about the lives we could have if everything went right, those are our dreams and aspirations...
God looked after the people of Israel in many ways and restored them to the position of their dreams. They became a happy and content people who were living in a land of plenty just as God had promised. But it was not always so because they gave in to the temptations and walked away from living with God: How could He keep looking after them if they would not listen to them!
The same can be said about our modern lifestyles – as long as we are willing to listen to God and to obey Him, He can continue to give us all our needs and even spoil us with plenty things just like a parent would. But when we walk away from living wit God, then we make it more and more difficult for Him to help us. Yes, anything is possible for God, but why make it as difficult as possible!
When God can help us and spoil us, people notice and they want to know why we have what we have – the appearance of living in Hope, Joy and Peace is rather appealing to those who do not have it! God wants to reach out to everyone and we are the key to Him being able to reach out.
Points to Ponder:
What would you ideal lifestyle be?
How close would God be?
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April 23: 1 Peter 1:13-23
Key Verse: 1 Peter 1:14
As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance.
Devotion:
Sometimes I wonder what the world would be like if my generation was brought up in the same manner as children are nowadays. I see a very different culture but there is still the same undertones now as there were then – some children are obedient and others are not! I try not to judge people in how they bring up their children because I am not them and I do not know what life they lead behind closed doors – how can I make any decision on their behalf!
I have vivid memories of going for a walk in the evening with my parents and my grandmother and being told in no uncertain terms that children should be seen and not heard! This was not because they did not love us but because of peer pressure from society – this was the time of the day when people would sit out on their verandas and have a quiet drink…
Jesus was quite different in how He handled things because He did not give in to peer pressure but tried to make a difference wherever He went; not a bad influence but righteous acts which would please most people. I say most because there are some people who are inherently evil because they do not know any better – of course they will object!
Jesus wants us to be more accepting in our interactions with others, but also to uphold the truth and peace. He wants us to be more holy and less judgmental in everything we do… which can be very difficult at times! We need to be in constant memory of the lengths Christ went to bring that peace and truth and know we should be willing to go the extra mile to do the same!
Points to Ponder:
Do you think you are good?
What do you think God thinks of you – knowing He sees everything?
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April 22: John 6:16-21
Key Verse: John 6:20
But he said to them, ‘It is I; don’t be afraid.’
Devotion:
How many times have you heard something or read something and wondered, what have I missed, shouldn’t there be something more to this that what I have just witnessed? Too many times in our lives we look for the extraordinary instead of seeming the beauty and majesty in the ordinary!
Yes this was extraordinary that Jesus was walking toward them on the water in the middle of a storm – which in itself raises all manner of questions in my mind… But I want to focus on the ordinary here and not the extraordinary. The disciples were in this boat after a long day, probably very tired and just wanted to get where they were headed. They didn’t think too much about the weather to begin with because they were used to all weather!
What they missed was having Jesus with them when they got scared. The moment when they realised all was not well, they felt most alone. They wanted their protector, their Saviour to be with them to make it all alright again. And at that moment Jesus appeared across the water walking toward them. He knew the right moment to come to them and He did not leave them alone!
It is in our lives when we feel most alone or the moments when we realise we have nobody by our sides that Jesus is standing there. It is the moments when we cannot see a way out. It is when we think this could be the end. Those are the moments when we can depend on Christ – because He promised to be here with us, always. It’s that moment when you are alone in the house, everything is quiet; but Jesus is still there!
Points to Ponder:
When do you feel most vulnerable?
Do you know Christ is still there?
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April 21: John 6:5-13
Key Verse: John 6:7
Philip answered him, ‘It would take more than half a year’s wages to buy enough bread for each one to have a bite!’
Devotion:
What do you expect when God asks you to do something? Do you expect Him to give you a detailed itinerary of all the things you have to do to get to the place where He wants you to be or do you sit and wait? On this occasion when Jesus sat down with the disciples for a bit of a rest a large crowd of people saw where they went and followed them. What was Jesus’ reaction? He asked Philip where they should get food to feed all these people...
When God asks you do do something it may not be what you are expecting and what happens may well go against what you think you should be doing. If God wants you to help people out it may not be to step forward and donate money to the latest appeal – it probably will not be anything like that! God will want to see you give from your heart which may not be in a physical way.
Jesus challenged the disciples to think in a different way – not the normal earthly ways they were used to but in a way where they would depend more on God to supply the need to others instead of relying on their own selves. The disciples immediately thought of the cost of supplying food and they even looked around to see if anyone had any food close by to share.
What Jesus wanted them to do was to do things in a methodical manner but at the same time relying fully on Jesus to supply the need He was asking them to fill. God is not going to ask you to fulfil a need if He knows you cannot do it. If you turn round and say you cannot do it then you are not depending on God to come up with the answer to how. Sometimes it is a case of waiting for further guidance while you tell others it will be ok.
Points to Ponder:
How often do you donate to charities?
How often do you ask God for help for those people?
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April 20: Acts 5:27-33
Key Verse: Acts 5:29
Peter and the other apostles replied: ‘We must obey God rather than human beings!
Devotion:
I think this may be one of the most misused verses in the bible when it comes to people wanting to do their own thing rather than following what God has asked of them. It is easy to use a verse from the bible when you want something to go your own way because our bibles are full of very good stuff! But, no matter how many times we say it, the bible must be used in context and not just random clips being taken for your own good...
The apostles were obeying Christ. He had given them instructions to tell everyone about Him and to open up the truth. They were not doing this to gain popularity or to have a big following or to boast about how many disciples they have or how many people they converted or whatever! They were following what Jesus personally told them to do knowing what they were doing would lead to conflict with the authorities.
When God wants you to do something, it is probably not going to be putting you on a pedestal so everyone can see how good you are; He does not want you to become the centre of attention, He wants to be the reason – not you! The apostles were supporting God and reminded the Sanhedrin God was the one who exalted Jesus to the position they were holding Him to.
When we take on God’s work, they should be willing to face earthly disruption, worldly complaints, evil opposition and so much more. We should not seek worldly recognition for ourselves but recognition for Jesus being the Son of God, our risen Saviour! We should be seeking to be humble and hard working servants for God, but also honest and hard working servants for others too!
Points to Ponder:
Who do you work for?
Will you allow people to see God as your master?
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April 19: John 3:16-21
Key Verse: John 3:20
Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed.
Devotion:
Have you ever read an instruction manual which only has half of the instructions you need to work with? Maybe the person who wrote the instructions thought everyone should know how to do a particular task so they left those instruction out of the manual, thereby making the manual of little use to some people… God is not like that, but people are...
When Jesus came to live amongst us He taught the disciples everything they needed to make sure they knew the truth which they could go and tell others about. He did not burden them with all the knowledge God has because a lot of that may have been hard to understand if not painful to hear; but He did give them the truth.
When John recorded these words he was in no doubt of the love of God and the love of Christ knowing the real reason why Jesus was allowed to come and live with them, die for us all and to be resurrected to defeat the curse of death we would all otherwise face. It is because of the one thing we do not do which prevents us from getting to heaven – it is not because of the string of events we do in our lives!
So what stops us all from doing that one thing? The things we do wrong… because they are sometimes painful to admit to so we keep them hidden; what better place to hide them but in the dark, and while we are in the dark we do not do the things we do in the light like believe, trust and hope. A little glimmer of light can give us hope – it is what we should be following!
Points to Ponder:
What stops you from admitting your faults?
Will you aim for the glimmer of light you see in Christ?
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April 18: John 3:7-15
Key Verse: John 3:12
I have spoken to you of earthly things and you do not believe; how then will you believe if I speak of heavenly things?
Devotion:
When Nicodemus met with Jesus it was not like most of the other leaders who tried to trip Jesus up so they could condemn Him for breaking the Jewish rules. Instead, Nicodemus came to learn more from Jesus because He knew there was more to this than just a person being a prophet or someone performing miracles. Nicodemus was searching for something but He was not sure what he was searching for!
This is much the same as most people when they are introduced to Jesus or Christianity. They see something which stirs their hearts and they want to find out more. As disciples we should be ready to answer questions in whatever way we can – even if it is telling people we don’t know the answer but we will try to find out!
Jesus wanted the leaders to know the truth but to also accept they would not know all the answers in the beginning; they would have to go and find out more by forming a deeper relationship with Christ. Jesus wants us to find faith through the unseen because that will give us more strength to face the unknown than being shown physical items. We question things because we want to know more – there is nothing wrong with questioning things if you are going to accept the truth when you are presented with it.
Nicodemus was willing to put aside what he had learned if the truth was going to be different from that – but he needed to understand things. This is the same process we will probably face when we are confronted by something which is unknown to us at the time. Believing is a personal choice to trust the source of information. Jesus has shown us He is the most reliable source of information we have – have faith.
Points to Ponder:
What does it take for you to believe?
Do you trust your most reliable source of information?
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April 17: Acts 4:23-31
Key Verse: Acts 4:31
After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.
Devotion:
One things we see about the disciples is they were ready for everything which would get thrown against them after their walk with Jesus! On this occasion Peter and John had been arrested and taken before the Sanhedrin where they were warned against preaching about Jesus; they stood up to the Sanhedrin and said they could not back down from talking to people about what they had witnessed!
When they got back together with the others they prayed earnestly about what they had had to face even asking God why the world should come up against them and against God. I think the key point here once again in they took their fears and worries straight to God in prayer, not sitting down and worrying about things or putting things off for a while to see if they settled down – they took to prayer immediately.
This is the one thing I have learned about God – He listens to your prayers and answers them! If you are honest and up front with God in your prayers, He is going to reciprocate those prayers with honest and upfront answers too. God does not have to wait for the right moment to answer your prayers. He does not have to wait until you are on your knees under the weight of life. He does not have to wait for the priest to ask on your behalf… He is waiting and listening right now.
Now is the time to start your prayers and now is the time to be up front and honest in those prayers. God wants a closer relationship with you – that includes honesty and openness on both sides!
Points to Ponder:
How long do you wait before praying?
Will you try praying when you need to instead of waiting?